Jonathan Wheatley | |
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| Born | 7 May 1967 Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England |
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| Title | Team Principal |
Jonathan Wheatley (born 7 May 1967) is a British motorsport executive and mechanic. From 2018 to 2024, Wheatley served as sporting director of Red Bull Racing in Formula One; he previously served as chief mechanic of Benetton and Renault. Wheatley is expected to become Team Principal of the Sauber Team on 1 April, months earlier than the planned summer of 2025, due to Bravi's departure in the end of January.[1]
Wheatley has contributed to eight World Constructors' Championship titles between 1995 and 2023: one as a mechanic at Benetton (1995), one as chief mechanic of Renault (2005), four as a team manager at Red Bull (2010–2013), and two as sporting director of Red Bull (2022–2023).
Career
[edit]Formula One
[edit]Benetton/Renault (1991–2006)
[edit]Wheatley began his motorsport career at Benetton as a junior mechanic in the early 1990s. He rose through the ranks at the Enstone-based team to become the chief mechanic from 2001 until 2006 when he left to join Red Bull Racing.[2]
During his time in Enstone, the team won two World Constructors' Championship titles and 33 Grands Prix.
Red Bull (2006–2024)
[edit]Wheatley's role at Red Bull included ensuring that the team operated within the FIA sporting regulations, and monitoring communication. He also supervised Red Bull's pit crew, who were widely regarded to be among the best in Formula One.[3][better source needed]
Red Bull's pit crew broke the then-world record for fastest Formula One pit stop during the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix—servicing Max Verstappen's RB15 in a time of just 1.82 seconds—beating their previous world record of 1.88 seconds set less than four months prior at the 2019 German Grand Prix.[4][5][6] The record stood until the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix, where it was beaten by McLaren with a time of 1.80 seconds.[7]
On 1 August 2024, Red Bull announced Wheatley's departure as Sporting Director at the end of the 2024 season to join Audi as their first Team Principal, following a period of gardening leave.[8]
During his time in Milton Keynes, Red Bull have won six World Constructors' Championship titles and 120 Grands Prix.
Sauber/Audi (2025–present)
[edit]Announced in August 2024, Wheatley was expected to join Sauber as their inaugural Team Principal in the summer of 2025 ahead of their 2026 campaign as Audi.[8] However, following Bravi's announced departure at the end of January 2025[9], Wheatley will be released earlier and will be expected take up his new role as Team Principal of the team on 1 April, just before the Suzuka Grand Prix.[10][11] During this period, COO and CTO Mattia Binotto is expected to serve as the interim Team Principal for the team during the Australian and Chinese Grand Prix.
References
[edit]- ^ https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-early-release-sauber-new-team-boss-jonathan-wheatley/
- ^ "Renault Chief Mechanic Jonathan Wheatley on the podium". Motorsport Images. 3 July 2005. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
- ^ Walthert, Matthew (21 March 2014). "Can F1 pit stops get any quicker". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
- ^ "60 Seconds with Jonathan Wheatley - Red Bull Racing Formula One Team". Red Bull TV.
- ^ Chachra, Tanish (12 July 2020). "Fastest F1 Pitstop: Which team holds the world record of Fastest F1 pitspot".
- ^ "2019 DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award - F1 Race Results". formula1.com.
- ^ "WATCH: McLaren set new F1 pit stop record with spectacularly quick tyre change in Qatar". formula1.com. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
- ^ a b "Team announcement: Jonathan Wheatley". Red Bull. 1 August 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- ^ https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sport/sauber-team-representative-bravi-steps-down-4860706
- ^ https://www.crash.net/f1/news/1062045/1/saubers-new-f1-boss-start-early-after-red-bull-agreement
- ^ https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-early-release-sauber-new-team-boss-jonathan-wheatley/
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